By Ben Evans
On Monday, the focus will be on Dubai for the prestigious end-of-season finale for ‘G4D’ Tour players (golf for the disabled) on the Earth Course at Jumeirah Golf Estates.
Video clips, images and headlines will bring their shot making to a widening audience, hopefully serving to change the way spectators think about golf, how they view athletes with a disability, and perhaps for some how they consider disability itself.
Certainly, watching champion golfers who play with an amputation, or cerebral palsy, or a spinal condition, while learning that they are lifting the trophy only after a highly demanding competitive journey, can give added pause for thought.
For a golfer with a disability doesn’t just get invited to play on the G4D Tour: they must qualify through the official World Ranking for Golfers with Disability (WR4GD), and they achieve this through consistent performances in the 120-plus, EDGA badged, supported or endorsed G4D events worldwide.
But when the likes of Ireland’s Brendan Lawlor (World Ranked 3), England’s Kipp Popert (World No: 1) and the Netherlands’ Daphne van Houten (leading World Ranked female player) tee it up in Dubai, it is their performances and their resilience over time that have shaped them into the highly competitive golfers they are today.
Each of this trio will tell you they have been encouraged by other players in EDGA and G4D events but in return they have inspired a whole raft of G4D Tour hopefuls themselves, players who will be trying to beat them on the course in the near future.
“This is what tour competition is all about,” said EDGA President Dr Tony Bennett. “On the one hand, the G4D Tour finale celebrates 10 fine individual golfers who have worked very hard to earn their place, while this event also represents the culmination of a strong ‘player pathway’ in G4D: from those first learning the game, to the regular golfers, to the champions in Dubai. Any person with a disability should get the opportunity to try the game, and the G4D Tour reinforces this wider philosophy.
“Kipp, Brendan and Daphne and other fine players demonstrate what can be achieved in competition. With an estimated 16% of the world population having a disability, and given the proven health benefits of golf, all the G4D and EDGA golfers are playing their role in changing our sport for the better.”
“Keep working hard, and bring more people into the game”
Ireland’s Brendan Lawlor fell for golf when he was just five and in his teenage years was competing in Pitch & Putt competitions, a format so popular in Ireland, with Brendan beating all-comers one season to become National Champion.
Shorter than average in stature due to a rare condition called Ellis-van Creveld syndrome, when Brendan started to compete in golf seriously at around 17, his Aunt discovered EDGA online and he made his debut at the EDGA Algarve Open in 2017. Of this he recalls: “There was a sense of nerves with my very first event, but there was also a sense of, to be honest, arrogance of thinking. I came from a very strong level of amateur golf in Ireland and I was going to the world of disability golf, underestimating the talent.
“That was the biggest learning curve I have ever had from an event. I had a chance to win and I didn't win, but I knew what to work on when I came away, to start my career with disability golf.”
Playing in further tournaments on the EDGA tour across Europe, his first victory was in the 2018 Czech Disabled Golf Masters. “That was kind of the start of, right, I can do well in this sport. It felt like this was the start of a role where I could help a lot of people and help myself as well,” Brendan explains.
Three successive wins propelled Brendan up the rankings and he qualified to play in the Australian All Abilities Championship, part of the hallowed Australian Open. Lawlor’s victory in the EDGA/European Tour Scottish Open in 2019, and victory in the ISPS HANDA World Disability Invitational in Ireland in 2021 took him to Number One in the World Ranking at that time.
These achievements led to an invitation to be the first player with a disability to play in a European Tour event in recent times, a historic debut covered by Sky Sports, the BBC, the European Tour and many other platforms. Brendan was of course also a highly popular winner of The G4D Open in 2023, the first of its kind, staged by The R&A in partnership with the DP World Tour and supported by EDGA, the Irishman beating the best G4D players in the world over the challenging Duchess Course at Woburn.
Looking back to how he got there, Brendan adds: “I feel great pride playing the game of golf in general. When you fall into being a role model for people, it's a really good thing.
“Sometimes now I take a step back, especially when things aren't going well, and I look at what I've done in the sport, and that gives you confidence to win more events, to move forward, to keep working hard, and to bring more people into the game.”
The 27-year-old from Dundalk smiles when he recalls that first Algarve Open in 2017. “All the events are played in very good spirit. When it's your first event, it's amazing to see the adversity all these guys have been through and it's pretty impressive… I’d say, if you're starting in G4D events, enjoy it. I think there are many different categories where you can excel and that's important.”
“The first time I felt a sense of belonging”
Kipp Popert from Kent, England, saw Belgian G4D golfer Adem Wahbi compete at the EDGA/European Tour Scottish Open in 2019 on Sky Sports Golf on TV, and after reaching out to him online, Kipp joined Adem to play in his first EDGA Algarve Open at Vila Sol that November, and the pair hit it off, playing together.
Both players have cerebral palsy: Kipp says he was very fortunate growing up that both his Mum and Dad were doctors who could help him get the right treatment; Kipp needing 11 operations and procedures on his legs and feet.
Reflecting on that first EDGA and G4D experience at Vila Sol and those that followed, Kipp says: “It's an awesome community and one that has changed my perception of life. When I was growing up I felt like I was the only golfer with cerebral palsy in the world, the only one I saw. And going into that room there at the Algarve Open with the other players, for me it was the first time I felt a sense of belonging.”
One of Kipp’s favourite photos is of him holing out to win at Vila Sol in 2019, finishing with a fist-pump. He was wearing the rugby shirt of his beloved late cousin and before the final round had promised his grandparents he would Facetime them afterwards, wearing his cousin’s shirt and holding the trophy. This promise drove him on: that feeling of nerves and excitement but also focused determination, would be the recipe that has taken him to World No: 1 today.
In 2020, Kipp’s 12-shot victory in the EDGA Hero Open at Fairmont St Andrews qualified him to play in further EDGA/European Tour events and his rise up the World Ranking was rapid. His G4D Tour CV speaks for itself, winning a stunning 12 tournaments in the opening three years, including the second edition of The G4D Open in 2024; while in America Kipp has won two U.S. Adaptive Opens, in 2023 and 2024.
Building on the confidence of this early EDGA and G4D experience Kipp has been able to develop new skills and in recent years to compete in leading amateur tournaments such as the British Amateur (on three occasions), the Brabazon Trophy, and the Lytham Trophy.
Kipp believes you should only be kind to the new young players coming along. He doesn’t want to be unapproachable to other young players now. “We're all competitive, but I do try my hardest to help, and to share tips and always be open to supporting them, because in all honesty, when growing up, I always felt alone.
“Try as hard on your tough days as on your good days and you’ll be alright. Just keep pressing on to the next task, the next opportunity, and you can do it. I keep it very simple. You set your goal on what you want to achieve and it doesn't matter what comes in your way, you keep trying. You work hard, press on.”
“It has always been a goal of mine to inspire others”
Daphne van Houten, from Teteringen in the Netherlands, also has in common with Lawlor and Popert a victory in The G4D Open, playing some great golf at Woburn to become the women’s champion in 2024.
And just as happened with Brendan Lawlor, the 2017 EDGA Algarve Open was to be the starting point in G4D for Daphne, “an experience I will never forget” says the 26-year-old.
“For me it wasn’t about the score but about having a taste of the atmosphere and the competition level, and to see if it was something I wanted to do for my golf career, and as you can tell I am still part of EDGA!
“All the players were very supportive, they made me feel welcome while not even knowing me, and now I try to do the same for others that come into the EDGA family.”
Since that early time, Daphne has been a consistent winner in G4D tournaments and has represented her country successfully, winning the prestigious EGA European Individual Championship three successive times; one recent competition highlight was playing in the G4D Tour Magical Kenya Open this February.
Belying her age she has always been a great encourager of other golfers; when playing at The G4D Open this year she believes she said hello to all 80 players from 19 countries. Daphne also wants to help more girls and women to play the game.
“I am very proud, but mostly happy that EDGA and the DP World Tour are giving me (us) a platform to do so. It has always been a goal for me to inspire others to pick up the great game of golf, no matter what your (dis)ability is. I feel honoured to showcase the game of golf to others.”
Daphne started enjoying golf when she was just six. At the age of 12, a medical screening showed she had Scoliosis. A year later the curvature of her spine got twice as bad. At 17, she endured a seven-hour operation where they put pins and screws in her back to keep the Scoliosis from getting worse. Her back remains a work in progress and managing pain can be a challenge, but Daphne always had a determination about her.
“The doctors told me I couldn’t play golf for a year, but after a month I was already doing some short game and six months later I was back playing competitions.
“My message is that you should never give up. I had felt like giving up until Marcella Neggers [National Coach for the Netherlands] reached out to me to give this a try and I am so glad I did!
“I wasn’t seeing a future in golf, but now I do and I am very happy I have been able to experience every single thing I have done with EDGA, from playing in Australia to winning the European Championships: every memory will be with me for a lifetime. It has been a lot of work and still is, but it has been worth it without a doubt.”
The journeys of Brendan, Kipp, and Daphne highlight that in golf for individuals with a disability, opportunities for competition, socialisation and improved health are now more accessible. Through consistent strong performances, golfers can also experience those exciting life-changing moments. It’s a pathway that means you can take the game as far as you can, but enjoy every shot.
If this article interests you, please visit www.edgagolf.com, where you can learn more, join taster sessions, participate in local and regional tournaments, compete in the national championship, and maybe even qualify for the G4D Tour.
